Playful Parenting Techniques

Educating and controlling the behavior of your child is never easy, especially during the first years when they start showing their rebellious side and they contradict you in everything. Instead of fighting them and trying to set your will against theirs, try a more friendly approach and make it look like you are playing with them. The following playful parenting techniques work with small children who love to play and can be tricked into doing something with the help of educational games.

The manners game

If you find it hard to convince your children to behave while they are eating, the manners game could work perfectly. This parenting technique consists of teaching your children the basic eating manners like”Don’t talk with your mouth full”, “take the elbows off the table”, “Be careful how you eat” or “Say please when you want something”. Give every member of the family an equal number of sticks and every time someone brakes a rule, a stick is taken from them and whoever has the most sticks at the end of the meal will win a reward. This will be the opportunity for your children to correct you and they will surely enjoy it.

The Tease-Tickle-Taunt trick

If your children don’t want to obey you and they start acting rebellious, you can easily convince them to do something through play. Create characters and give each one a role they have to perform in order to create a story, then watch how your children react to chores and responsibilities. Most children are reluctant to do something their parents ask them because they feel like they are being forced, but if they see it as a game they will want to do their best and win. A good technique is called Tease-Tickle-Taunt and it convinces your child to do something without them knowing it. For example, if you want your child to gather their toys, you say”I would ask you to gather your toys, but I don’t think you can do it because you are too small”, and your child will firmly say”No, I am not too small and I can do it!”. The next step involves tickling and is something every child wants, so you can try to say” OK, but if you can also make the bed, I will tickle you!” and the child will automatically make the bed so that they can be tickled. Then comes the taunting, when you say “Those were easy, but the next one you won’t be able to complete!” and you ask a harder chore. The child will see it as a challenge and will immediately perform it successfully without knowing that you played them.